Bowling ball accelerator mechanism



Feb. 4, 1969 R. A. LENHART BOWLING BALL ACCELERATOR MECHANISM Sheet Filed July 19. 1965 INVENTOR. RONALD A. LENHAR'T BY ATTORNEY Feb. 4, 1969 A. LENHART BOWLING BALL ACCELERATOR MECHANISM Sheet 2 of2 Filed July 19. 1965 an H" In In I n In H Ila INVENTOR. RONALD A. LENHART ATTORNEY United States Patent Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A bowling ball accelerator for use on automatic pin setting machines which have a ball return track. The .accelerator mechanism includes a movable mounting frame rotatably supporting an accelerator wheel which has a resilient frictional ball engaging surface. The wheel is disposed for contact with bowling balls moving along the ball return track, and the track itself is provided with resilient covers or sleeves at the zone for accelerator wheel contact to obtain improved ball rotational speeds. An adjusting means for changing the wheel to ball contact pressure provides elements for holding the mounting frame and wheel in inoperative position.

The present invention relates to a bowling ball ac celerator and, specifically, to such an accelerator for use in connection with existing types of automatic bowling pin spotting machines. In general the present mechanism is intended for use with bowling machines of the type mentioned in my copending Patent No. 3,319,959 issued May 16, 1967, which is directed to a Pit Cushion Mount and Actuator Mechanism, for such bowling machines.

A primary objective of the present invention is to provide a mechanism which will efliciently engage a bowling ball to accelerate the return travel speed of such ball.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved ball engaging and acceleration characteristics for a wheel type ball accelerator.

In connection with the foregoing objective, it is a fur ther object to provide supplementary ball engaging means which will increase the efiiciency of contact between a ball accelerator wheel and a bowling ball.

Another object of the invention is to provide a bowling ball accelerator which may be applied to ball guide tracks having both vertical and horizontal guide curves adjacent the accelerator station.

Another object of the invention is to provide a ball accelerator having improved contact characteristics between the accelerator wheel and ball and between the ball and guide rails whereby a more efficient transfer of the forces of acceleration is obtained to closely regulate the increased speed of the ball.

A specific object of the invention is to provide yielding surfaces on an accelerator ba-ll Wheel and -On adjacent ball guides to obtain improved contact whereby the ro tative energy of said wheel is etficiently converted to increased velocity for the bowling ball.

A further object of the invention is to provide a bowl ing ball accelerator which may be positioned conveniently in existing types of bowling pin setting machines without undue modification of installed components.

A further object of the invention is to provide novel adjusting means which further facilitate the installation and removal of existing ball clusters.

3,425,691 Patented Feb. 4, 1969 An overall objective is to provide a ball accelerator which can be economically installed on existing bowling machines without substantial modification of such ma chines so that the return speed of the bowling ball can be increased to effectively reduce the Waiting time be tween successive rolls of the ball.

A further overall objective is to provide a ball accelera tor which may be used in conjunction with the pit cushion mechanism described in my mentioned copending appli' cation to cooperatively further reduce the time lapse inter val between successive ball rolls.

Further objects and advantages of the present inven tion will be apparent from the appended description and drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a top plan View illustrating components of a preferred embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the mechanism shown in FIG. 1, with ball duster components being added,

FIG. 3 is a rear elevation showing further features of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a partial rear cross-sectional elevation taken through the accelerator wheel and accelerator wheel drive mechanism, and

FIG. 5 is a rear elevation similar to FIG. 3 with the ball wheel in elevated position.

Briefly stated, the present invention provides a wheel type accelerator for use in bowling operations which is designed so that the accelerator wheel may be positioned above a return track for the bowling ball. The vertical positioning of the accelerator wheel itself is adjustable so that the force of contact between the wheel and the ball may be adjusted and, further, so that the entire mechanism and support therefor may be moved to an out of way position to facilitate the removal of a ball duster unit normally provided on bowling machines of such type. The accelerator wheel is of a pneumatic or semipneumatic type, and the exterior surface of the wheel is provided with a cover of low durometer to minimize marking of the ball while increasing the frictional contact characteristics for the wheel. The invention further pro vides means for increasing the inertia of the wheel. A further important improvement is involved in the provision of resilient covers for the hall guide track in the area adjacent the accelerator wheel so that any tendencies for the ball to slide away from the accelerator rather than roll at increased speed will be minimized.

The detailed features of construction and operation which contribute to such improved result are shown in the accompanying figures. In FIGURES 1 through 3 it will be seen that the ball accelerator is designated as a unit by the numeral 11. Such unit includes a base support 12 upon which the drive motor 13 and an accelerator Wheel mounting arbor 14 are secured. The arbor assembly 14 includes self-aligning bearings 16 and 17 and the accelerator shaft 18. The base 12 is itself pivotally mounted on a frame 21 by means of the pivot bolt 22. The frame 21 is attached to supports of the bowling pin setting mechanism and is actually in part a portion of the original support frame for a walkway. A substitute walkway is provided by the board 23 which is shown in its new and elevated position as likewise supported by the frame 21. For convenience of illustration, the walk board 23 has been removed in the FIGURE 1 presentation.

In operation of the bowling machine, the ball progresses from one or the other of the curved entrance guide tracks 24 and moves toward the left past the accelerator position and thence down a vertically inclined curve 26 in the guide track toward the head of the bowling alley. Accordingly, the pivot bolt 22 is located at the ejection end of the accelerator 11. With this arrangement the receiving end of the accelerator mechanism can be moved up and down as the base 12 is pivoted about the bolt 22 to change the contact pressure between the balls and the ball accelerator 11. The extent of such vertical movement is controllable and adjustable through use of a positioning and release mechanism 27. This mechanism is supported by a top cross bar 28 on the forward portion of the frame 21 which supports a centrally disposed adjusting link 29 and a pair of laterally disposed limit bolts 31. The limit bolts 31 extend loosely through openings in the base 12 so that the base may be moved up and down along the support bolts. The lower head 32 of such bolts 31, however, provides a limit or stop so that the accelerator mechanism 11 cannot be lowered to a position which would block the passage of a bowling ball unless the bolts 31 are removed from the cross bar 28. The base 12 of the accelerator 11 may be raised, however, to an upper limit position where the base or the extension tangs 33 on such base interfere with the cross bar 28 or the cen trally disposed adjusting link 29.

To adjust the exact vertical positioning for the accelerator base 12, the adjusting link 29 is provided with threads 34. Threaded nuts are engaged on the link 29 to establish and hold the accelerator wheel 50 in desired.

positions. At the top a rest nut 36 is provided to hold the base in raised, out-of-the-way, position. A wing nut 37 is placed intermediate the length of the threads 34 for easy adjustment movements; and when the accelerator mechanism 11 is in its lowered position, a stop nut 38 establishes the lower operating position for the mechanism. The wing nut 37 can be tightened against the lower stop nut and the extension tangs 33 to hold the base in its regulated position. If at any time it becomes necessary to move the base 12, the wing nut 37 can be loosened and the adjusting link 29 can be swung outwardly about its upper pivot support 39 to disengage the adjusting link 29 from the base 12 and the tang 33 thereof. If it is desired to raise the accelerator mechanism 11 to an out of way position as necessary to remove a ball duster 53 from its support assembly 54, the tang 33 can be positioned above the rest nut 36 and the adjusting link 29 can be replaced in its vertical position to hold the base 12 and the accelerator mechanism 11 in elevated position. Once the ball duster 53 has been repaired or replaced, the accelerator mechanism 11 can be returned directly to its correct adjusted position by reversal of such described procedure.

The described supports and adjusting mechanisms are all provided so that an accelerator wheel 50 may be placed and driven in ball contacting position with respect to a bowling ball 41 moving along the guide track 25. To power such operation the shaft of motor 13 is provided with a drive pulley 42 which is interconnected by a V belt drive 43 to a driven pulley 44 on the arbor shaft 18. A hub 46 is mounted on the arbor shaft 18 between the bearing mounts 16 and 17, and a wheel 47 is secured to such hub. A wheel tire 48 of illustrated semipneumatic type is positioned on the wheel 47. The wheel tire itself is provided with a contact face 49 which completes, together with the tire 48, the wheel 47 and the hub 46, an accelerator wheel assembly designed by the numeral 50. It is this wheel assembly 50 which is rotated in position above the guide track 25 to engage a bowling ball 41 and to impart an increased velocity to such bowling ball so that the return of the ball to the bowler will be expedited.

While it is recognized that others have used accelerator wheels to contact a bowling ball moving along a guide track to accelerate the ball, there are certain distinctive features in this presentation which contribute to a more efiicient and economical acceleration of the ball. First, the wheel tire is provided with a contact face 49 of resilient material which is of relatively low durometer to establish a high coefiicient of friction. While such contact face may be provided integrally with the wheel tire 48, the contact face 49 here shown is a separate cylindrical sleeve which is stretched about the tire 48. With this two-part construction a tire of conventional rubber construction and strength can be provided with an operative contact face of lesser hardness or durometer. While an integral one-piece construction could be provided to satisfy all such requirements, it is believed that such construction would be initially more costly than the present configuration. With separate tire and contact face components a desirable accelerator wheel assembly 50 can be provided through use of wheel assemblies that are already used by the owners of some types of automatic bowling machine equipment. A tire and wheel unit that is presently being used as a retarder at the head of bowling alleys may be adapted for ball accelerator purposes. These tire and wheel retarder assemblies have been successfully used in the present ball accelerator units 11 when provided with a cylindrical sleeve of natural rubber as a contact face 49. A counterweight hub 46 is also used to provide an increased rotative inertia for the assembly.

Placement of such increased mass at the hub of the wheel assembly is found to be advantageous, since the inertia forces of a heavy hub are directly imparted to the tire 48 rather than being transferred to the wheel by the shaft 18 when the rotating mass is at the pulley 44 or other location. The positioning of the large mass between the respective support bearings is also advantageous. The counterweight hub 46 is maintained on the wheel assembly by the through bolts 52, and, accordingly, such weights may be easily removed if any adjustment in the amount of applied weight is required or if removal of the tire 48 becomes necessary.

Since the rotative speed of the accelerator wheel assembly 50 is of considerable importance in the attainment of the desired ball acceleration, it is thought best to describe the size ratios of an efliciently working assembly. In such a desired embodiment an electric drive motor 13 rotating at 1720 r.p.m. is provided with a drive pulley 42 having an operative pitch diameter of 2.1 inches. This drive pulley is connected to a driven pulley 44 having an operative pitch diameter of 8.0 inches. The outer diameter of the wheel tire 48 is approximately 8.5 or 9.5 inches, with contact face 49 installed. These ratios provide a drive assembly rotating at approximately 450 r.p.m., and, accordingly, the accelerator wheel has a peripheral speed of 16.5 feet per second. With this arrangement a ball which normally travels at an overall speed of approximately 5 miles per hour from the pin setting machine to the bowling alley head may be accelerated to a speed of more than 9 miles per hour without requiring undue modification of the guide track or of the retarder mechanisms at the head of the bowling alley.

In existing installations the listed acceleration is a practical operating maximum, since any increase thereabove creates a tendency for the ball 41 to leave the guide track 25 at the vertical curve 26. Since the maximum saving in elapsed time for the ball passage can only be realized when the maximum satisfactory acceleration is attained and since only a slight increase thereabove will cause operative and maintenance difficulties, it is necessary that the acceleration imparted to the ball be closely controllable. The adjustment mechanisms described facilitates such close control, but it has been found that the provision of standard frictional Contact characteristics between the accelerator wheel and the ball and the ball and the guide track are of equal importance.

In order to obtain a better contacting relationship between the ball and guide track so that the ball will be given an increased rotative speed rather than a lateral sliding or ejection component, the present embodiment of the invention provides for the installation of resilient covers 56 on the guide track at the zone where the ball is being accelerated. In a satisfactory installation, pieces of vinyl tubing having tapered entrance and exit edges 57 have been applied to the guide track 25. When the ball is positioned above these resilient vinyl covers 56 and when the ball is contacted by the accelerator wheel 50, the covers 56 are themselves deformed so that good frictional contact is established between the ball and the guide rails. This lower frictional contact prevents the ball from slipping or sliding away from the accelerator wheel, and instead a top spin is imparted to the ball which not only accelerates the ball but has a tendency to keep the ball in contact with the descending curve 26. which is quite closely adjacent the accelerator position. The effectiveness of such resilient covers 56 is in the described installations quite easily demonstrated, since upon removal of the flexible covers a lesser acceleration will be obtained, and the balls will have a tendency to jump off the guide track.

The described invention has further advantages that are inherent in this improved design. The fact that the wheel 50 is of small diameter makes it possible for the accelerator 11 to be positioned on existing machines without excessive modification. That a small wheel can be used and that the wheel can be rotated at a speed of less than onethird the speed of the drive motor is likewise of importance from the standpoint of economy of operation and maintenance. At such low rotative speeds the bearings, wheels and all comparable assemblies can be expected to last through an extended service life. It has further been found that the ball acceleration obtained through use of this mechanism is adequate justification for the expense of the installation. Since a line of bowling may be accom plished in less total elapsed time, the bowling alley proprietor can expect an increased revenue through use of this mechanism.

When such mechanism is used together with the pit cushion mount described in my copending application, an overall time reduction is obtained, which likewise economically justifies joint installation of such conversion mechanisms. The fact that such increased speed of operation can be obtained without necessitating extensive modification of the basic automatic pin spotting machine or of the return track or of the retarder mechanism at the head end of the lanes makes a combined installation highly desirable and less costly than alternate types of modifications for similar cycle speeding purposes.

The mechanism installed in accordance with the present disclosure will not interfere with any of the regular operations of the presently installed pin spotting machines to which this mechanism is adaptable. As shown in FIG- URES 2 and 5 the accelerator wheel 50 and its associated drive components can be raised to an out of way position so that the ball duster 53 may be removed from its support assembly. When the accelerator mechanism is raised as shown in FIGURE 5, the cluster 53 with associated hoops 58 may he slid reciprocally out of its normal position in the support assembly 54 so that the ball duster may be completely removed. When the cloths have been cleaned or when new cloths have been applied, the ball duster may be reinserted in the support assembly 54 and the accelerator mechanism can be lowered to its previously adjusted position against the stop nut 38.

While separate embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it should be apparaent that the mechanism is adaptable to various modifications and changes. All such changes as are embodied within the terms of the appended claims are considered to be a part of thi invention.

I claim:

1. A bowling ball accelerator mechanism for use on automatic pin spotting machines to speed the return of bowling balls along a guide path comprising a support frame, ball guide surfaces on said frame, an accelerator frame movably carried by said support frame, a drive motor mounted on said accelerator frame, accelerator wheel means rotatably supported on said accelerator frame and having a resilient, frictional, ball engaging peripheral surface, drive means interconnecting said motor and accelerator wheel for rotating said wheel, adjusting means carried by said support frame for allowing said accelerator frame to move vertically relative to said support frame and guide surfaces to change the contact pressure exerted by the resilient surface of said accelerator wheel against bowling balls moving along said ball guide surfaces, and elements providing resilience for said ball guide surfaces at a zone extending through the full zone of contact for said accelerator wheel and balls for minimizing sliding contact between said ball and ball guide surfaces due to the accelerating impact of said wheel whereby an increased rolling speed is imparted to said balls.

2. A bowling ball accelerator mechanism for use on automatic pin spotting machines to speed the return of bowling balls along a guide path comprising a support frame, ball guide surfaces on said frame, said guide surfaces being inclusive of a downwardly curved ball accelerating component, an accelerator frame movably carried by said support :frame, a drive motor mounted on said accelerator frame, accelerator wheel means rotatably supported on said accelerator frame and having a resilient, frictional, ball engaging peripheral surface, said accelenator wheel being positioned ahead of said downwardly curved ball accelerating component, drive means interconnecting said motor and accelerator wheel for rotating said wheel, adjusting means carried by said support frame for allowing said accelerator frame to move vertically relative to said support frame and guide surfaces to change the contact pressure exerted by the resilient surface of said accelerator wheel against bowling balls moving along said ball guide surfaces, and elements providing resilience for said ball guide surfaces at a zone extending through the full zone of contact for said accelerator wheel and balls for minimizing sliding contact between said ball and ball guide surfaces due to the accelerating impact of said wheel whereby an increased top rolling speed is imparted to said balls for improved contact between the balls and the ball guide surfaces inclusive of said downwardly curved ball accelerating component.

3. Structure as set forth in claim 2 wherein said ball guide surfaces are separate spaced apart rails and wherein the resilient elements for said ball guide surfaces comprise individual covers of resilient materials disposed on each of said nails.

4. A bowling ball accelerator mechanism for use on automatic pin spotting machines to speed the return of bowling balis along a guide path comprising a support frame, ball guide surfaces on said frame, an accelerator frame movably carried by said support frame, a drive motor mounted on said accelerator frame, accelerator wheel means rotatably supported on said accelerator frame and having a resilient, frictional, ball engaging peripheral surface, drive means interconnecting said motor and accelerator wheel for rotating said wheel, adjusting means carried by said support frame for allowing said accelerator frame to move vertically relative to said support frame and guide surfaces to change the contact pressure exerted by the resilient surface of said accelerator wheel against bowling balls moving along said ball guide surfaces, elements on said accelerator frame readily engageable and disengageable with said adjusting means, and retaining means carried by said adjusting means for selective engagement by said elements for holding said accelerator frame vertically upward in an inoperative position.

5. Structure as set forth in claim 4 and further comprising elements providing resilience for said ball guide surfaces at a zone extending through the full zone of contact for said accelerator wheel and balls for minimizing sliding contact between said ball and ball guide surfaces due to the accelerating impact of said wheel whereby an increased rolling speed is imparted to said balls.

References Cited UNITED 5 STATES PATENTS Rundell et a1. 27349 Strong 27349 Keesling 273--49 Levendoski 273--49 10 Huck et a1. 27349 X Patterson et a1. 27349 Szost 27349 Anderson 27349 Untiedt 27349 Jones et a1 27347 ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner.

M. R. Page, Assistant Examiner. 

